We knew that Hurricane Harvey was a monster. and now we know that it was a monster of historic proportions, News Radio 1200 WOAI reports.
The U.S. Geological Survey said today that Harvey was 'the most significant rainfall event in U.S. history.' with records dating back to the 1880s.
The USGS says over eight days, Harvey dumped more than 60 inches of rain in some locations, which is about 15 inches more than the average amount of rain moist southeast Texas usually gets in an entire year.
That eight day rain surpassed by more than a foot the old record of 48 inches set when Tropical Storm Amelia drenched the Texas Hill Country with 48 inches of rain back in 1978.
In addition to being heavy rain, Harvey's rain fell over an unprecedentedly wide area.
USGS crews reported 2,123 high water marks in 22 counties in southeast Texas and three parishes in southwest Louisiana.In one case, USGS researchers found a debris line nearly 15 feet up a telephone pole in Leon County, north of Houston.
The USGS says the chances of this level of storm happening in the course of a given year is 0.2%, meaning this level of flooding can be expected once every 800 years.
The data will be used by state and federal resource managers, and by local officials in updating building codes, planning evacuation routes, creating floodplain management ordinances, providing environmental assessments, and planning other community efforts to become more flood resilient.
MAP: USGS